Taiwan's Ministry of National Defence (MND) has said that recent "goodwill" gestures by Beijing towards the island "do not mean lasting peace across the Taiwan Strait" and that it will continue to develop its own weapons systems and procure high-technology systems from the United States. Speaking at a Legislative Committee meeting on 4 June, the newly appointed Minister of Defence Chen Chao-min said that "Taiwan's defence build-up and battle readiness remain necessary" and that further military development remained "the basic action [Taiwan] must take" ...
I hope that this is true. But if China insists that warmer relations can only happen if Taiwan foregoes defensive modernization, can President Ma stick to this position?
Perhaps only Ma can buy advanced weapons. And perhaps only the KMT can really become disillusioned with the mainland when it becomes apparent that no amount of warming can satisfy China's demand for Taiwan's submission to Peking.
Can a democratically elected ruler truly just sell out their own country?
